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Layoffs hit Rare following Kinect Sports Rivals flop

shandy706

Member
It's 16 people (10% of the number who worked on Sports Rivals), at the end of the project.

Layoffs at the end of projects are typical. We'd probably have the same even if the game was a huge success.

I don't want to minimise it for the people involved, but I'd keep it in perspective before theories start spouting out of everywhere about what this means. It probably means nothing more than that a project finished.

Absolutely right.

Best of luck to those moving on.
 

SAB CA

Sketchbook Picasso
Bad for the people who were laid off. "Good" for those who want Rare to possibly decide to make something more traditional. Sounds like they rode the Kinect Sports series to a point where it needs a break. So onto new projects!

I've never been especially found of Rare in any way, but I do enjoy the fact that their games really never match the "normal" games of the market. Perhaps this is their chance to dive into a multitude of smaller games, or to return to older, much talked up IPs.

I'd probably have gotten KSR is my gaming area was more KSports space friendly, but it's currently not. Sorry Rare! Take all those Franchises you reference with KS DLC (Battletoads, Perfect Dark, Blast Corps, etc), and make some games with them that I can play, and I'll be there! :)
 
Flopped even with Kinect being bundled with every unit. Think about the Kinect games that are being made now. Man..

At this point I'd imagine they've been cancelled or converted to traditional gamepad games. Ryse did it pretty early in the game.
 
Phil Spencer is in charge now. I have a slight glimmer of hope that this Kinect Sports Rivals failure will motivate him to actually reform Rare to a non-Kinect future.

Until they shut down the studio for good I won't give up hope.

But he's always been the one in charge.

And he's the one who keeps on insisting everything Rare does is because they want to do it themselves.
 

Silky

Banned
I really hope these people are back on their feet as soon as possible. Talented bunch.

Amazed at the people claiming Rare has been unsuccessful for a while.
 
150 people worked on Kinect Sports Rivals?

Also, did we get sales figures during May NPD for KSR?

...May NPD is next month.

You're talking about April NPD and no, we did not.

But the fact that it didn't chart in the Top 10 (and titles like GTA V made it into the Top 10 with ~100K) shows you that it wasn't all that successful in its debut.
 

Oersted

Member
Hope they will find a new job, fast.

It's 16 people (10% of the number who worked on Sports Rivals), at the end of the project.

Layoffs at the end of projects are typical. We'd probably have the same even if the game was a huge success.

I don't want to minimise it for the people involved, but I'd keep it in perspective before theories start spouting out of everywhere about what this means. It probably means nothing more than that a project finished.

True.

In before lameass Druckmann joke.

Edit.
Hope these guys get a new job asap.
Guerrilla Cambridge and SCEE London Studios are hiring.

Sony defended + ad. Godspeed^^
 
Flopped even with Kinect being bundled with every unit. Think about the Kinect games that are being made now. Man..

I think there's, at least, one factor that is important to note that isn't present with X1 versus X360. There simply hasn't been enough time for a more casual or non-hardcore set of owners on X1 and its library has only been seriously primed with core games in its first six months. X360 Kinect v.1 had nearly five years to amass a wide array of players, a good chunk of which bought the Kinect as an optional peripheral and were more receptive to that sort of game. Expecting big things from the first big built-for Kinect v.2 game was probably a mistake so early on, but especially when the game was just not that good a value compared to previous installments. MS/Rare has to salvage the game by not nickel 'n diming its users for content that should have been part of the full price package...they need to get all the older events and minigames in there immediately. Just a terrible way to handle the core release.
 

Retro

Member
Terribly depressing, considering how huge Rare was back in the day. Donkey Kong Country, Goldeneye, Perfect Dark and Banjo-Kazooie were solid gold system sellers. Stuff like Killer Instinct, Blast Corps, Viva Pinata and all the way back to Battletoads were nothing to sneeze at either.

It's a shame that Microsoft basically backed them into a corner to support Kinect and then threw them overboard when they stopped supporting it themselves. I hope they find better work elsewhere, and soon.
 

cakely

Member
You can't kill Rare; it's the rotting, animated corpse of a great company forced to make waggle games by its evil masters.
 

Saty

Member
A shell of their former self yes, but there are still a few grizzled Rare veterans at the studio.

That's why I kept wishing that Rare would actually act like Rare.

It'd be interesting to see a real attempt at Rare-ness with the mix of the new studio and the few remaining veterans.

But NO. We just HAD to get nonstop Kinect Sports games for five years in a row. :p

Anything you can share about Rivals April NPD results? I assume it's sub 100k since its out of the top 10 and your comment about GTA's monthly sales.
 
STOP RUINING RARE.

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They fucking stuck rare on a stupid peripheral nobody wants and now they're abandoning it and downsizing the developer, classy.
 

Trickster

Member
I wonder if Rare could even create a proper game anymore. I mean at this point won't the people at Rare have been working on avatars and kinect stuff for so long, that making a big game would be immensely difficult, simply due to a matter of experience?
 

Raide

Member
I think Rare will has some great IP's sitting there. I know they are not the same company as the one that pretty much made the N64 worth playing but things change. I still think they could make new amazing games if the whole Kinect thing was out of the equation. I actually liked Kinect Sports but that stuff should have been bundled with Kinect from day one. Same as Sports Rivals, it should have been the showcase for Kinect, not some 6 month later after-thought.

Just make that Banjo game and if it flops, then its gamers that have failed. If they cry for it so much and still don't support it, then may as well close and the IP's move to other devs. Come on MS, just let them get it over and done with.
 

Donos

Member
Bummer.

If Rare brings out a core game (without Kinect gimmick) for the XB1, the name RARE alone would drive some sales, even if it's only a shell of the former studio.
Nuts and Bolts had some neat ideas and was graphically one of the better titles.
There has to be something good in the drawer.
 

LTWheels

Member
Isn't this just a normal sizing down after a project is finished as studios will take on extra staff in order to complete a game?

The fact that only 16 people were let go suggests that.

Nothing to be concerned about. Shouldn't really even be news.
 
Pretty happy at the PR response as it looks like Rare might finally be allows to create new IP/revisit old IP that isn't Kinect. What a blessing that KSR flopped.
 

Raide

Member
I wonder if Rare could even create a proper game anymore. I mean at this point won't the people at Rare have been working on avatars and kinect stuff for so long, that making a big game would be immensely difficult, simply due to a matter of experience?

Making Kinect games does not make them useless developers. Many of them are super talented but they bet on the wrong horse.
 

Cyberia

Member
UPDATE:

Sources close to the Microsoft-owned studio indicated that just under 20 employees are set to depart, including veteran programmer Chris Sutherland, who has worked on Rare games for more than 20-years.

During his distinguished career Sutherland acted as lead programmer on Battletoads, as well as all three Donkey Kong Country and Banjo-Kazooie games. He's also known as the 'voice' of the latter's bear and bird protagonists.

CVG sources indicate that designer Gavin Price will also leave Rare, after a 15-year career which saw him work on Viva Pinata, Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts and a number of unannounced, cancelled projects.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/464142/rare-cuts-senior-staff-in-studio-methodology-change/
 

manual4

Banned
They fucking stuck rare on a stupid peripheral nobody wants and now they're abandoning it and downsizing the developer, classy.

well what the fuck do you want them to do? if their focus is not on that peripheral anymore, why bother keeping more people than they need. its a buisness.
 
Infamous: Second Son was the best-selling PS4 / Xbox One SKU last month.

It sold 82K. So Kinect: Sports Rivals is lower than 82K in the USA.

How much lower? That's a good question...

Only way it creates numbers is by bundling it with the Kinect whenever it's sold separately.
 
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